Greece

Santorini is the Greek island of dreams — whitewashed villages clinging to volcanic cliffs above a sapphire caldera. Oia's sunset is legendary, Fira's clifftop bars are unforgettable, and the black sand beaches are unlike anywhere else. Visit the ancient Akrotiri ruins, taste Assyrtiko wine, and take a boat trip to the volcanic hot springs.

Athens is the cradle of Western civilization — the Acropolis still dominates the skyline 2,500 years on. Beyond the ancient ruins, a modern city of street art, rooftop bars, and a vibrant food scene has emerged. Plaka's winding streets, the Monastiraki flea market, and sunset views from Lycabettus Hill make it far more than a history lesson.

Greece's vibrant second city has a legendary food scene, Byzantine churches, Ottoman-era markets, and a stunning waterfront promenade. More laid-back than Athens with excellent nightlife and easy access to Halkidiki beaches and Mount Olympus.

Greece's largest island is a world unto itself — the Palace of Knossos preserves the earliest advanced civilization in Europe (Minoan, 2700–1450 BCE); the Heraklion Archaeological Museum holds the finest Minoan collection on earth; the Samaria Gorge is a 16 km hike through Europe's longest canyon. In the west: Chania's Venetian harbor, Elafonissi's pink-sand beach, Balos Lagoon. A car is essential — the island rewards those who leave the package-resort coast.

The Cycladic island that defines the Greek summer — Chora's whitewashed Cycladic alleyways and 16th-century windmills frame Little Venice's seafront balconies. Paradise and Super Paradise are the loudest beach clubs in the Mediterranean; Psarou and Agios Sostis are the calmest. Boats run hourly to UNESCO Delos, the sacred birthplace of Apollo and Artemis and one of the most extensively excavated sites in the Aegean. June–September is high season; July–August is when prices triple and clubs run until dawn.

The largest of the Dodecanese (1,400 km², 90K residents) wraps a UNESCO Old Town that’s the largest inhabited medieval town in Europe — 4 km of intact Knights Hospitaller walls, the Street of the Knights, and the Palace of the Grand Master. Plus the cliff-top Acropolis of Lindos above twin azure bays, the Valley of the Butterflies (June–September Jersey tiger moths in the millions), the Acropolis of Rhodes on Monte Smith, Mandraki Harbour where the Colossus once stood, and 220 km of beaches along both Meltemi-cooled western and calm eastern coasts.

The largest Cyclades island (430 km², 20K residents) is the most agriculturally self-sufficient and the best-value Cycladic base — the iconic Portara doorway from a 6th-century BC unfinished Apollo temple silhouetted at sunset, the Venetian Kastro of Naxos Town, the highest peak in the Cyclades (Mt Zeus, 1,003m, with the Cave of Zas where the king of the gods was hidden), the marble-paved mountain village of Apeiranthos, the 4 km Plaka beach arc, and the unique Kitron citrus liqueur from Halki’s 1896 Vallindras Distillery.

The Cyclades island that delivers the Mykonos atmosphere at 30–40% lower prices — Naoussa’s photogenic harbour with a half-submerged 15th-century Venetian Kastro at the entrance, Parikia’s marble-paved Old Town centred on Panagia Ekatontapyliani (one of the oldest continuously functioning Christian churches in the world), the marble quarries at Marathi where the Venus de Milo was carved, the Lefkes mountain village and its 1,000-year-old Byzantine Path, Golden Beach’s windsurfing scene, and the 7-minute ferry to Antiparos with its spectacular cave.